Edelweiss

July 31, 2009

Mr O and I embarked on yet another trip down to the coast for the BC long weekend. We headed down immediately after work and decided to stop along Highway 97 in Lac La Hache for dinner at the Edelweiss. It’s a cute little schnitzel house that we’ve always just driven by. So far, this blog is already a success in my eyes as far as I’m concerned since it’s achieved its goal today in making us try out new restaurants.

Schnitzel is essential a thin piece of cutlet, traditionally veal, that is breaded and fried, served with a slice of lemon and a side of potatoes. The closest thing I’ve ever had is Ton Katsu, but I’m suspecting the flavours will taste quite different.

pretty pretty

The summer’s heat wave continues and since the restaurant wasn’t air conditioned, we decided to eat in the outside patio where there was at least a nice breeze coming in from the lake. It was only around 5:30pm when we arrived and the place was very quiet so it was quite a serene setting… except for the sounds of the passing traffic just off to our side.

I opted to order a chicken schnitzel, and Mr O asked for the House Special schnitzel, which is supposed to be also a chicken cutlet, but served stuffed with spinach, mushrooms and bacon. For starters we really wanted to try the fried camembert, simply because we’ve never tried anything like it before. But warm creamy cheese served with pear spears and slices of toasted french bread sounded like a dish too decadent for the current weather, so we decided to try the calamari squid rings instead.

lakeside seating

The lady who seated us and took our orders was a nice German lady who I suspect is also the proprietor. Once she left the patio, I whipped out my camera and started to take random shots of the scenery around us. I don’t think it was until this moment that it dawned on Mr O just what my blogging project really entailed. He was trying to tell me about his day and I swore that I really was paying attention to what he was saying, but I guess it was hard to believe since I was busy taking pictures of the flowers next to me. I’m also just starting to get to know my camera a bit better so I’m not always quick on the draw in terms of what settings to use. I suppose I must’ve seemed a bit – obsessive – when I took about five pictures of the same shot :P I can’t help being a perfectionist! Hahaha!

When the calamari arrived I admit that I was fairly disappointed. They were perfectly shaped rings, symmetrical with one another. The breading was thick and crunchy and it was obvious that this appetizer plate was not made on-site. They looked like they might have once belong inside a plastic bag found in the freezer aisle of your local supermarket. I hoped that the schnitzel was more impressive than this.

mmm... crunchy :P

To my relief, it was and it looked very good. Both dishes came with a side of potatoes, carrots, and a red cabbage relish. I was a bit wary about trying out the cabbage because I’ve never eaten anything so bright before, not counting the koolaid of yester years of course. But it was very tasty! Very sweet and sour like which really appealed to my cantonese taste buds! The chicken cutlet was moist and the breading lightly seasoned and not thick at all like the calamari was. I tried to be very lady like in the manner of how I inhaled my food down.

schnitzel anyone?

Mr O’s chicken was a bit dryer than mine and the coating was a bit soggy too, but it was most likely due to the spinach and mushroom filling inside. He forgot that I wanted to take pictures of our food so he was almost ready to dig into it the moment it had arrived. I had him cut into the chicken so I could take a picture of the inside and the owner had walked by just as I was putting my camera away. I didn’t offer her any explanation and I think she must’ve been worried that we were finding something wrong with the food because she walked by us a few seconds later to make sure that everything was okay. I assured her that it was and that we were enjoying our meal. Later on Mr O had told me that she had looked concerned when she saw me taking the picture. I guess I should probably make some sort of food blogging business cards to hand out in case of future incidences.

voila!

Despite not detecting any hint of bacon in his schnitzel, my dinner companion enjoyed his meal overall as well. By now we were both full and were anxious to get back on the road again so we declined dessert. This was one of the rare times when dinner didn’t come from a greasy paper bag out of McDonald’s or A&W so it was nice that I didn’t experience the feeling of a bloated stomach that I normally associate with a trip down to Vancouver. This is great and I can’t wait to see where my blog will take me next!

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One Response to “Edelweiss”

We too, have enjoyed the Edelweiss, and found the service excellent, and the food even better. We were flogging my wildlife photos (www.furnfeather.net) at the Lac La Hache Garlic festival, late August, 2011,and ate there twice. We will certainly go back when we return to their festival, next year!